World War II Database

Country of Origin	Finland
Type	Submachine Gun
Caliber	9.000 mm
Capacity	20 rounds
Length	870.000 mm
Barrel Length	314.000 mm
Weight	4.600 kg
Rate of Fire	750 rounds/min
Range	200.000 m
Muzzle Velocity	396 m/s

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe KP/-31 submachine guns were designed by Finnish firearms designer Aimo J. Lahti and were built by Oy Tikkakoski AB in Sakara, Finland. They were considered well made, accurate, and reliable, and they were among the very few submachine guns to have quick change barrels for continuous firing. Of those built in Finland, 485 examples were exported to Estonia in 1937, 3,042 examples were exported to Germany, 5,505 examples were exported to Bulgaria between 1940 and 1942, and 1,250 examples were exported to Croatia between 1942 and 1943, among other foreign buyers. Outside of Finland, they were also built under license in Denmark (1,400 examples), Sweden (35,000 examples), and Switzerland. They were used in large numbers in the Spanish Civil War and the wars between Finland and the Soviet Union. A few also saw action in the hands of Norwegians during the German invasion of Norway, while a few captured examples were used by Soviets against the Germans in the Leningrad, Russia area. After the war, KP/-31 submachine guns saw actions in several more wars, including the Korean War. A few remained in active service with the Finnish Army until the 1980s.

Sources:
Ian Hogg, The Encyclopedia of Infantry Weapons of World War II
Wikipedia ww2dbase

Last Major Revision: Aug 2014

Photographs

See all 6 photographs of KP/-31 Submachine Gun

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